Devices in transport lifts

ABSTRACT

Improvements in devices in transport lifts particularly for transport between a quay and a ship and comprising a base adapted to be disposed on the quay or the ground and a lift mast supported from said base with a lift cage adapted to travel thereon between said base and at least one further stop level, said stop level comprising a bridge, a platform or the like. A second mast is arranged beside the lift mast and on this second mast a bridge is supported in a constantly substantially horizontal position, being vertically slidable on such second mast. The bridge extends from said second mast towards the place to which transports are to be made, such as the deck of a ship lying at the quay, said bridge with its free end resting on said ship deck.

nited States Patent Westerlund [54] DEVICES IN TRANSPORT LIFTS [72] Inventor: Tage Westerlund, Skelleftea, Sweden [73] Assignee: Linden-Alimak AB,Skelleftea,Swe-

den

22 Filed: June 1, 1970 21 Appl.No.: 42,117

[52] US. Cl. ..214/14 [51] Int. Cl ..B65g 67/58 [58] Field of Search .....214/l4, 622, 623, 630; 187/9 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,508,668 4/1970 Young ..214/14 1,736,877 11/1929 Dalin et a1. ..214/14 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,034,411 6/1966 Great Britain ..214/14 1 Aug. 29, 1972 Primary Examiner-Gerald M. Forlenza Assistant ExaminerFrank E. Werner AttorneySommers & Young [S 7 ABSTRACT Improvements in devices in transport lifts particularly for transport between a quay and a ship and comprising a base adapted to be disposed on the quay or the ground and a lift mast supported from said base with a lift cage adapted to travel thereon between said base and at least one further stop level, said stop level comprising a bridge, a platform or the like. A second mast is arranged beside the lift mast and on this second mast a bridge is supported in a constantly substantially horizontal position, being vertically slidable on such second mast. The bridge extends from said second mast towards the place to which transports are to be made, such as the deck of a ship lying at the quay, said bridge with its free end resting on said ship deck.

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INVENTOR Toge Wesferlund BY JWIW A TTORNEY DEVICES IN TRANSPORT LIFIS The present invention relates to transport lift apparatus, particularly for transport between a quay and a ship and comprising a base adapted to be disposed on the quay or the ground, a lift mast supported from said base and having a lift cage adapted to travel thereon between said base and at least one further stop level, said stop level comprising a bridge, a platform or the life.

For transport of various kinds, particularly between a quay and a ship in shipyards and similar places, transports lifts have recently come into use. Due to the fact that great flexibility in the position of the lift is required dependent on horizontal movements of the ship during various works thereon, e.g. during the installation of equipment, as well as vertical movements due to different loading and varying water level, said lifts have hitherto been relatively complicated and constituted a relatively poor compromise between the many requirements. A commonly used kind of such transport lifts has been supported from the ships hull and been provided with a mast extending downwardly towards the quay, on which mast a lift cage then has been moveably mounted. Of course, difficulties are encountered in obtaining sufficient definition of the position of the lower stop level of the lift in view of the movements of the ship, not only in vertical direction but also horizontally. Now, however, by means of this invention, it is possible to eliminate in a vary satisfactory manner the problems hitherto met in transport lifts of the kind referred to, and, to fulfill in a much better manner the various and partly contradictory requirements for a transport lift for use between a quay and a ship.

The object of the invention therefore is to provide an improved device in transport lifts, said device substantially being distinguished in that, beside the lift mast, there is disposed a second mast on which is freely vertically slidably mounted a bridge in a constantly substantially horizontal position, said bridge extending from the second mast towards the place to which transports are to be carried out, such as the deck on a ship lying at the quay, said bridge resting with its free end on said ship deck.

By suitably dimensioning the stop level or bridge in question and provision of suitable measures for making same moveably supported from the ship, all disadvantages occuring in hitherto used transport lifts of this kind can be easily eliminated.

By way of example, the invention will be further described below with reference to the accompaning drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a transport lift device according to the invention, with a stop level mast and a stop level movably mounted thereon as well as a moving lift cage, and

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the device according to FIG. 1.

As already mentioned in the introduction, the device according to the invention is based in principle on known transport lifts known from other fields such as the building industry, said lifts comprising of a vertical lift mast 1 with a lift cage 2 travelling thereon; For utilizing said transport lift according to the invention, the lift mast l is provided with a base 3 which is disposed on the ground, such as a quay. According to the invention, there is arranged beside the lift mast a second vertical and parallel mast 4 supporting a stop level 5. The mast 4 is also secured to the base 3 and preferably strutted from the mast 1 under the intermediation of framework cross-members 6. The stop level 5 is designed as a bridge or platform supported vertically moveable on the mast 4 by a supporting device 7 and extends towards the ship to the same side of the mast 4 as does liftcage 2 relative to the mast 1. The support device 7 preferably comprises an angular bracket of suitably profiled bars which are freely slidably guided by means of rolls 8 rolling along the mast 4. At its free outermost end the bridge also is provided on its bottom side with a supporting device 11 adapted to rest on the ship 10.

Although said last-mentioned supporting device 11 can be made in a number of various manners, in a preferred embodiment of the invention it is made such as to comprise a carriage 11 travelling on a rail 13 by means of rollers 12, said rail being mounted on the ship, preferably at the railing thereof. The carriage 11 is then by rollers 14 slidably joumalled longitudinally of said bridge 5 transversely to the rail 13. By this arrangement, relatively great position differences between the location of the lift on the ground or quay and the ship 10 are allowed, vertically as well as horizontally, and even such great differences as up to 1,5 meters, which are required in certain ship-building works.

The bridge 5 is provided with a control cam (not illustrated) for stopping the lift cage 2. The supporting device 7 carrying the bridge 5 is freely vertically moveable on the vertical mast 4, the bridge 5 thus always will follow the horizontal and vertical movements of the ship between possible limits quite automatically, and owing to said control cam the lift cage also will be stopping exactly at the bridge 5 thus adapted in its position.

It is obvious that said self-adjustment of the bridge 5 constitutes a very great advantage and eliminates most of the drawbacks residing in hitherto present transport lifts of this kind. Particularly it is to be noted that the prior lift structure in which the mast was supported hanging directly onto the ships side was not only difficult to adapt in its stop level in the bottom position but also of course was an obstacle to certain works to be done on the exterior of the ships hull such as the finishing of the painting. Said drawback is not at all to be found in the present lift device since said stop level or bridge all the time is adapted in its position vertically according to the ships railing and since both masts 1 and 4 are standing at sufficient distance from the ships side so as not to constitute any obstacle. As the lift mast l and the bridge mast 4 are strutted mutually, it is also secured a constant minimum clearence between the lift cage 2 and the bridge 5.

I claim 1. Transport lift apparatus particularly for transport between a quay and a ship and comprising:

a base adapted to be disposed on the quay,

a lift mast supported on said base,

a lift cage traveling on said lift mast between said base and at least one further stop level,

a second mast,

a bridge means which is freely vertically slidable along said second mast which said bridge means remains in a constantly substantially horizontal 3 4 position, said bridge means extending from said bridge and being movable also along said rail, to second mast and toward the place in which tran sh b permit automatic d continual j Ports are to be mad? Such as the deck of a ment of the vertical position of said bridge as the lying at the quay, said bridge means having its free end resting on a rail 5 supported by the deck of the ship, said rail extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of said bridge means, and a carriage mounted below said bridge and movable longitudinally of said ship moves vertically relative to the quay,

said further stop level for said lift cage being at any time determined by the vertical position of said bridge along said second mast. 

1. Transport lift apparatus particularly for transport between a quay and a ship and comprising: a base adapted to be disposed on the quay, a lift mast supported on said base, a lift cage traveling on said lift mast between said base and at least one further stop level, a second mast, a bridge means which is freely vertically slidable along said second mast which said bridge means remains in a constantly substantially horizontal position, said bridge means extending from said second mast and toward the place in which transports are to be made such as the deck of a ship lying at the quay, said bridge means having its free end resting on a rail supported by the deck of the ship, said rail extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of said bridge means, and a carriage mounted below said bridge and movable longitudinally of said bridge and being movable also along said rail, to thereby permit automatic and continual adjustment of the vertical position of said bridge as the ship moves vertically relative to the quay, said further stop level for said lift cage being at any time determined by the vertical position of said bridge along said second mast. 